The true meaning of christmas

[Isaiah 6:8]

On the early morning hours of December 9 2007 a gunman entered the dormitory of the Youth With A Mission Denver. After a discussion he was asked to leave, he did only to return and open fire, killing two staff members and wounding two others. The two killed were Tiffany Jonson and Phillip Crouse.

Later on that day the same gunman drove down to Colorado springs, and opened fired in a church, killing two sisters, he was shot by an armed guard. He then sadly took his own life.

I had previously been on staff at that YWAM base. I had known all the people involved and injured on that base in some shape way or form. Its impact is still with me to this day. I had met Tiffany Johnson only a week before and was struck by her smile and personality. It was only a small conversation while adding creamers and such to our coffee but I will never forget it.

It was in large part through worthy that I was able to come to terms.

I was in shock for quite a few days afterwards and the following is the short blog I wrote expressing my feelings.

The True meaning of Christmas

Hope, Love, forgiveness, and the Promise of Life Eternal.

The Gift of Jesus, his new life and later his death and resurrection brought us all these.

And all these I saw, today in a place I did not think I would find.

A Memorial Service for two of God's own taken by a hateful, selfish act

The Family of Tiffany Jonson exemplified all those quality's. They Celebrated Her life. Her life was spent loving others. the hurting the "Unlovable'. In her death they forgave, and they all have hope that Tiffany is now in Heaven, living a better life now then we have now, for all eternity, no pain, no sorrow, no tears, only endless joy.

This is the true meaning of Christmas.

We may mourn the loss of our friend but we rejoice with Them that They have run the race, fought the fight, and has entered into their reward. We are left behind to pick up the good fight where they left off. We are not to quit, and give up, but rather we are to redouble our efforts so that their lives will be honored not by words but by our lives. They sacrificed and gave of themselves to reach others, can we do no less?

Jesus did the same thing, He left His seat of power and glory to come down as a frail human child, to grow into man hood, to live a sinless life, to die a horrible violent death. All because he loved us, and wanted us to be able to have eternal life with him, to hang out with him. One of the friends of Philip Crouse, asked to be given a dream or a vision to let him know how Philip was doing.. He got a dream that he saw Phillip in heaven, making things out of wood with Jesus. Philip turned to him and said "I am O.K., I am learning to be carpenter from the best one in history.

This is all what Christmas is about.

-Isaiah-

There legacy continues, with many more going into missions and coming to the Lord through this. A documentary movie was made following this, and its impact is already being felt even though it is not in full distribution yet. http://www.jesusfreaksmovie.com/ is the movie.